China and the US have agreed to suspend newly announced export restrictions for one year, pausing an escalating trade dispute that had threatened to disrupt global supply chains for critical minerals and unsettle international markets, reports Caixin. The agreement followed an Oct. 30 meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Busan, South Korea. Both governments confirmed they will temporarily halt their latest trade restrictions, including Washington’s enforcement of its controversial “50% ownership rule” and Beijing’s retaliatory curbs on exports of rare earths, lithium battery components, and graphite materials.
While the immediate threat of disruption has been eased, the standoff reflects the growing strategic importance of rare earths and other key minerals—and the intensifying global race to control them. The US is ramping up efforts to build alternative supply chains with Asian partners and allies, even as China tightens its grip on upstream production and technology.
Rare earths—vital for everything from military equipment and wind turbines to electric vehicle motors and smartphones—have become the centerpiece of this new supply chain battleground. The one-year truce buys time, but also highlights how minerals once viewed as industrial inputs have become instruments of geopolitical leverage.